Metal trimming machine



Oct 11, 1949. H. E MORTON El AL METAL TRIMMING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 2Filed June 7, 1944 lillk //'/7/ Ear] Nov-Z01 F 73. lwrk INVENTORS.

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METAL TRIMMING MACHINE Filed June 7, 1944 5 Shets-Sheet 5 Oct. 11, 1949.H. E. MORTON ET AL 2,484,353

METAL TRIMMING MACHINE Filed June 7, 1944 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 ,Himgry EvilNorton 9! HD7770? B; Elm-K IN VEN TORS Patented Oct. 11 1949 METALTRIMMING MACHINE Henry Earl Morton, Muskegon, and Homer B. Clark,Muskegon Heights, Mich.

Application June 7, 1944, Serial No. 539,076

7 Claims.

Our present invention relates to improvements in'metal trimmingmachines, and particularly to metal trimming machines for removingprotuberances inadvertently produced on the surfaces of sheet metal whenwelding the ends or edges thereoftogether; and the objects ofimprovement are: first, to provide a metal trimming machine of novel andimproved structure; second, to provide a metal trimming machine wherebyprotuberances can be removed from the surface or surfaces of sheet metalcleanly; third, to provide a metal trimming machine whereby metalprotuberances can be removed from sheet metal quickly; fourth, toprovide a metal trimming machine whereby metal protuberances at oppositesides of metal sheets can be removed simultaneously; fifth, to provide ametal trimming machine whereby metal protuberances can be removed fromsurfaces of curved metal cleanly; sixth, to provide a metal trimmingmachine whereby metal protuberances can be removed from metal surfaceshaving irregular shapes; seventh, to provide a metal trimming machinethat will be simple in construction and easy to operate.

We attain these named objects, and such other objects as appear from aperusal of the following description assisted by the accompanyingdrawing of our metal trimming machine, in which- Figure l is a sideelevation view of our entire metal trimming machine;

Figure 2 a rear elevation view showing the major portion of our metaltrimming machine in cross-section and the upper trimming cutter arrangedto traverse an arc bowed upward intermediate its ends.

Figure 3 a front elevation view of the metal trimming machine of whichthe upper trimming cutter is arranged to traverse an arc bowed upwardintermediate its ends as similarly shown in Figure 2;

Figure 4 a fragmentary view of the machine showing the upper trimmingcutter arranged to traverse an arc bowed upward at its ends;

Figure 5 a fragmentary view of the machine showing the upper trimmingcutter arranged to to be reciprocated on a straight course;

Figure 6 an enlarged side view of the trimming cutter supporting rampswith the trimming cutters mounted therein as in the act of removingprotuberances from a vehicle wheel rim, and including the shaft andbearing for supporting the lower cutter ramp;

Figure 7 a top plan view of the lower trimming cutter supporting rampwith the lower trimming cutter mounted therein;

Figure 8 an under side view of the upper trimming cutter supporting rampwith the upper trimming cutter mounted therein;

Figure 9 a cross-sectional view of the upper and lower trimming cuttersas in the act of removing protuberances from the outer and innerperipheries of avehicle wheel rim simultaneously.

Throughout the several views of the accompanying drawing illustratingour metal trimming machine, similar numerals refer to similar parts ofthe machine, and referring thereto:

Numeral I refers to the base portion of the machine housing, 2 theintermediate portion of the housing and 3 the upper portion on which ismounted fluid pressure cylinder 4 closed at its upper end by cover 5 andhaving piston S therein mounted on the upper end of piston rod I havingsecured to its lower end cross-head 8 provided with two downwardlyextending arms 9 at each of its ends, the said downwardly extending arms9 each having an upwardly extending link I0 pivotly connected to itslower end and of which there are four, each pivotly connected tolongitudinal shifting frame I I.

The said longitudinal shiftable frame II has cross members I2 connectingits side members together in spaced apart relation to each other, andbetween the said cross members upper protuberance trimming cuttersupporting ramp I3 having a groove machined in its lower work facingside and extending longitudinally of the ramp in inclined relation tothe side members of the frame and the ramp, and in which groove is heldby key I3 the upper trimming cutter l4 whereby the metal protuberance I5is removed from the sheet of metal herein shown as of vehicle wheel rimI6 for convenience.

Numeral i'I refers to the lower trimming cutter supporting ramp, havingextending from its rear end shaft l8 oscillatorily supported in bearingI9. The said ramp having machined in its periphery and in inclinedrelation to its axis, groove 20 in which is held by key 2| the lowertrimming -cutter 22 for removing protuberance 23 at the inner peripheryof the vehicle wheel rim IE by forward cutting movement of the cutter22, which has an upward arched reciprocal movement imparted to it by theshaft I8 oscillated in bearing I9 by collar 24 adjustably secured toreduced diameter portion 25 of the shaft I8 and having arms extendingtherefrom.

Within the base portion I is fluid pressure cylinder 26 into which isadmitted fluid under pressure past the fluid control valve 21 andagainst the under side of piston 28 for reciprocating the said piston inthe cylinder, and by its pivotal connection with link 29 connected toarm 30 extending from collar 24 imparts oscillatory motion to the shaft18, ramp l1 and lower trimming cutter 22, and by the link 32 pivotlyconnected to arm 33 of the collar 24 and lever 34 of the shaft 34 andsecond lever 35 on said shaft and pivotly connected to link 36 connectedto boss 31 of the longitudinal shiftable frame ll supported by swingablelink ll], causes the frame to reciprocate as shown in Figures 2 and 3 onan arc bowed upward intermediate its ends and flatter than the arctraversed by the lower trimming cutter during its protuberance timmingoperation.

The piston rod 1 of the piston 6 has crosshead 38 secured to it abovethe cross-head 8 for guiding the piston rod in slideways 39 providedwith tapered gibs 40 for aligning the piston rod and thereby thecross-head.

The cross-head 8, as shown in Figures 2 and 3, in addition to thedownwardly extending arms 9 have (which as shown consists of a vehiclewheel rim) work clamping members 41 extending downward from crossmembers 42 engaging the work and clamping said work against thesupporting members 43 extending upward from the bearing l9.

Numeral 44 refers to the lever by which the valve 27 is operated toadmit fluid under pressure through ports 45 and 46 to the cylinder 26 tomove the piston 23 in the cylinder 26, and pipe 41 provides meanswhereby the said fluid under pressure is conducted to the valve 21 andtherefrom through ports 45 and 46 to the cylinder 26 to move the piston28 in the direction desired to operate the trimming cutters l4 and 22 intheir respective cutting and reverse movements by the mechanism thereforas previously described.

Numeral 48 refers to the valve operated by lever 49 admitting andcontrolling fluid under pressure to cylinder 4 through ports 50 and 5|for operating the piston '6 therein, and 52 the pipe for conducting thesaid fluid to the valve 48.

Broken lines 53 and 54 shown in Figures 7 and 8, represent the angularrelation of the cutting edges of the trimming cutters l4 and 22 duringtheir protuberance trimming or removal from the metal, and which angularrelation permits the protuberances to be removed by cutting with theleast consumption of power' In Figure 4 the metal trimming cutter I4 isshown as mounted on the ramp [3 forming a part of shiftable frame 55which is supported from above by the four links 56 pivotly connected. tothe cross-head 57 at 58, and is guided in its longitudinal movement byguide members 53 extending downward from the cross-head which by reasonof links 56 pivoted above the frame is caused to travel on an are havingits two ends bowed upward. The longitudinal movement of the frame 55ramp [3 and trimming cutter I4 is caused by like linkage mechanism asconnected to the arm 33 of the collar 24 secured to the reduced diameterof shaft [8 and boss 2'! extending from the shiftable frame as shown inFigures 2 and 3.

In Figure 5 the metal trimming cutter I4 is shown as mounted on the ramp1 3 forming a part of shiftable frame 60 which is slidable in a pair ofslideways Bl located below the cross-head at each of its ends, and byreason of the slideways the frame, together with the ramp l3 andtrimming cutter I4, is caused to slide during its shifting movement in astraight line and to shift re- 4 ciprocatively in the slideways 6| bylike linkage mechanism as connected to the arm 33 of the collar 24secured to the reduced diameter portion 25 of the shaft [3 and the boss3'! extending from the frame, as shown in Figures 2, 3 and 4.

In performing the operations of trimming or removing metal protuberancesfrom work such as the welded sheet metal herein shown and described asthe rim of a vehicle wheel (having provided the metal trimming machinesubstantially as described and the wheel rim having protuberances at itsouter and inner peripheries) it is placed on supporting members 43 withthe protuberances uppermost, and fluid under considerable pressure, suchas one hundred pounds or more per square inch, is then admitted by valve48 through port 55 to the cylinder 4 and against the upper side ofpiston 6, thereby forcing the piston, piston rod and cross-head 8downward and the work clamping members 4i against the vehicle wheel rimIt and thereby clamping the wheel rim onto the work supporting members'43. Having clamped the wheel rim onto the supports :3 as described,fluid under considerable pressure is admitted by valve 27 through port46 to the upper side of piston 28 in cylinder 26, thereby forcing thepiston 28 downward and by the link 25 extending from the piston 28 andconnected to arm 35 of the collar 24, turns the collar 24, shaft It andlower trimming cutter ramp and trimming cutter 22 through the cut andthereby severs the protuberance 23 from the inner periphery of thevehicle rim, and by the long link 32 connected to the arm 33 of thecollar 24, lever 34 on shaft 3 5, lever 35 on said shaft 34, link 36connected to boss 3'? of the longitudinal shiftable frame H, moves the'shiftable frame ll longitudinally of the cross-head 8, and thus carriesthe upper trimming cutter l4 mounted on ramp l3 through the cut of theprotuberance l5 at the outer periphery of the wheel rim and therebysevers the said protuberance from the rim.

Both trimming cutters l4 and 22, as shown in Figures 2 and 3, travel anarc path with the path of the upper trimming cutter bowed upwardintermediate its ends and having a greater radius than the radius of theouter periphery of the wheel rim, and the radius of the path traversedby the lower trimming cutter is less than the radius of the innerperiphery of the wheel rim.

While the cutting movement of the trimming cutters have been describedas of one direction when removing a protuberance from each cutter, it isto be understood that the direction of travel can be reversed by merelyreversing the cutter I4 in the slot of the ramp l3, and the cutter 22reversed in the slot 2| of the ramp I7, and that the direction of thecutters can be the same when removing protuberances from very thin sheetmetal.

Having described our present invention, the rights thereto we desire tosecure by Letters Patent are defined in the following claims therefor.

We claim:

1. A metal trimming machine comprising, a rotatable ramp mounted onahorizontal axis having a metal trimming cutter extending therefrom, avertically removable crosshead, means for moving the crossheadvertically, a horizontally shiftable frame, a pair of links pivotallymounted on the crosshead in spaced parallelrelationship and extendingsubstantially vertically upwardly therefrom, the shiftable framepivotally attached to the upper ends of the pair of li-nks, an upperramp having a metal trimming cutter extending down.

wardly therefrom secured to the shiftable frame, and means for shiftingthe shiftable frame on the pivoted links when the first mentioned rampis rotated.

2. A metal trimming machine comprising, a supporting frame, a lower ramprotatably mounted on a horizontal axis on the frame having a metaltrimming cutter extending substantially upwardly therefrom, means forrotating the ramp, a crosshead mounted for vertical movement on theframe above the ramp, means for moving the crosshead vertically, a pairof links pivotally connected to the crosshead at spaced horizontallocations and extending upwardly therefrom, a horizontally shiftableframe pivotally connected to the upper ends of the links at equallyspaced horizontal locations, an upper ramp having a metal trimmingcutter secured thereto and extending downwardly therefrom secured to theshiftable frame, and means for shifting the shiftable frame on thepivoted links when the lower ramp is rotated.

3. A metal trimming machine comprising, a supporting frame, a lower ramprotatably mounted on a horizonta1 axis on the supporting frame andhaving a metal trimming cutter secured thereto and extendingsubstantially upwardly therefrom, means for rotating the ramp, a pair ofspaced work supporting members supported on the supporting frame eachside of the ramp, a crosshead mounted on the supporting frame above thelower ramp for vertical movement toward and away from the lower ramp, apair of similarly located work clamping members secured to the crossheadand extending downwardly therefrom,

a pair of links pivotally connected to the cross- 7 head in spacedparallel upwardly extending relationship, a shiftable frame pivotallysupported on and between the upper ends of the pair of links, a link andcrank connection between the lower ramp and the shiftable frame forshifting the frame horizontally when the lower ramp is rotated.

4. A metal trimming machine comprising, a rotatable supporting ramphaving a metal trimming cutter extending upwardly therefrom and havingan arm extending therefrom, a, fluid pressure cylinder having a pistontherein operated by fluid pressure in the cylinder, a link pivotallyconnected between the arm and the piston for rotating the ramp, ahorizontally shiftable frame supported above the ramp for vertica1movement, means for moving the shiftable frame vertically, a metaltrimming cutter secured to the shiftable frame and extending downwardlytherefrom, and means for shifting the shiftable frame horizontally whenthe ramp is rotated.

5. A metal trimming machine comprising, a supporting frame, a metaltrimming cutter pivotally mounted on the supporting frame on ahorizontal axis, means for rotating the cutter, a crosshead supported onthe supporting frame above the cutter for vertical movement, means formoving the crosshead vertically, a horizontally shiftable framesupported on the crosshead for horizontal movement thereon, a secondmetal trimming cutter secured to and extending downwardly from theshiftable frame, and means connected between the shiftable frame and thefirst mentioned cutter for shifting the shiftable frame horizontallywhen the first mentioned cutter is rotated.

6. A metal trimming machine comprising, a supporting frame, a tool headrotatably mounted on the supporting frame on a horizontal axis, a metaltrimming tool secured to and extending substantially upwardly andslightly spirally of the tool head, a hydraulic ram supported on thesupporting frame, a link and arm connection between the hydraulic ramand the tool head for rotating the tool head thereby, a crossheadsupported on the supporting frame for vertical movement above the toolhead, a second hydraulic ram supported on the supporting frame connectedto the crosshead to impart vertical movement thereto, a pair of linkspivotally connected to the crosshead in spaced relationship each side ofthe tool head and extending upwardly in parallel relationship, ashiftable frame pivotally connected to the upper end of each of thelinks, a second tool head secured to the shiftable frame above the firstmentioned tool head, a metal trimming tool secured to and extendingdownwardly and slightly angularly to the second mentioned tool head, anda link and crank connection between the first mentioned tool head andthe shiftable frame for shifting the frame horizontally on the pair oflinks when the first mentioned tool head is rotated.

7. A metal trimming machine as described in claim 6 including a pair ofwork supporting members one each side of the first mentioned tool head,and 'work clamping members secured to the crosshead in verticalalignment with the work supporting members adapted to clamp acylindrical work piece therebetween when the crosshead is moveddownwardly for trimming superfluous metal therefrom.

HENRY EARL MORTON. HOMER B. CLARK.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,117,663 Gressle Nov, 17, 19141,505,420 Petersen Aug. 19, 1924 1,975,939 Grotnes Oct. 9, 19342,386,451 Ellis Oct. 9, 1945 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 538,589Great Britain Aug. 8, 1941

